


Infectious Love

by CrazyNekoChan



Series: Soudam Week Summer 2020 [6]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canonical Character Death, Despair Disease (Dangan Ronpa), M/M, Mild obsessive behaviour, Neo World Program (Dangan Ronpa), Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-06
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:34:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24218962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrazyNekoChan/pseuds/CrazyNekoChan
Summary: Monokuma has a new trick up his sleeve to make the students trapped on Jabberwock Island suffer. A despairing disease that is taking hold of the students' minds, including Kazuichi who has feelings re-emerge that should have been erased.Day 6 of theSoudam WeekPrompt: Cyberpunk/Steampunk/etc. | Royalty/Servants |Despair
Relationships: Soda Kazuichi/Tanaka Gundham
Series: Soudam Week Summer 2020 [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1742218
Comments: 12
Kudos: 302





	Infectious Love

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally the story that was planned for Day 4, while I wanted to write something for the other prompts for today, but I was so stuck that I decided 'F**k it' and moved it onto today
> 
> Also again a fic that I wanted to do for ages now

After the untimely demise of two more of their allies, the wounds caused by their passing still were fresh for the mortals which were still trapped within the realm of Jabberwock Island. This included Gundham himself, who silently mourned his lost allies. Yet he and the remaining allies of his could at least still rejoice at the return of the Yakuza Heir whose mortal form had healed after his sadly failed attempt to rescue the Warrior of Swords.

Trying to not let his cursed heart be crushed by the weight of the past mistakes that had been made, Gundham dressed himself for the day and after gathering his trusted Dark Devas of Destruction, he left his private realm to meet up with his allies for their daily shared meal.

The earliest of hours was the same as all the others. The Goddess of the Sun was giving her generous gift of warming light onto the mortal realm and only little clouds were hiding away her shine. Sometimes Gundham felt as if the cursed reality in which he and his allies had found themselves to be, to be nothing more than a nightly terror. Yet ever so often reality would show her grisly face, just like this morning when he approached the hotel in which he and his allies would always share their meals and he could hear the sound of some mortal crying.

While it was not a rarity that one of the mortals would cry under the pressure of their situation on their weak minds, it still alerted him and he quickened his pace until he arrived within the restaurant in which many of his allies were already assembled, including the mortal who had been in tears. However it was not one of the mortals who he had been expecting, but the Wild One, Akane, who he had never seen or even believed to be the kind to shed tears in such quantity. Though she might have been still in shock about the severe injury which the Trainer of Warriors has suffered from priorly, even if her reaction might be slightly delayed and a bit more of the drastic kind.

“Hello Gundham.” the voice of the Lucky One rang out and gained the breeder's attention, making him turn towards him with mild wariness of the mentally unstable mortal. “Did you hear, Sonia isn't actually a princess, but just an imposter. She isn't even from Europe like she claims, but from a small village in Kyoto!”

Gundham stared at the Lucky One for a moment as his mind tried to process what the mortal had said to him out of the blue. Why would the She-Cat lie about her origins? That could hardly be the truth as far as Gundham could conclude. Which was mainly due to her not looking in any kind of way as if she were from anywhere with Japan. Was the Lucky One in that dire need of medications now due to his mental conditions? Gundham wondered if maybe the Stuttering One could be of assistance, as she was the Ultimate Nurse and as such he scanned the room for her and saw her and the Ordinary One fuss over the Loud One, who also seemed to be behaving oddly and was for some reason Gundham could not phantom convinced that Hajime was planning to consume her flesh.

“They all have a very high fever. We have to do something.” the Stuttering One cried in distress as she and the Ordinary One tried to round the oddly behaving mortals up, including Ibuki, Akane and Nagito.

More of their allies assembled within the restaurant as the nurse continued checking everyone for fever, including Gundham who did not enjoy the physical contact yet did not try to complain too much as it seemed as if a virus was spreading within this realm which needed to be contained. As he himself was feeling fine and did not have a fever, he was cleared and instructed to wait and keep an eye on the infected mortals.

While the last few mortals appeared Gundham then spotted the Tamer of Automations who also entered the restaurant while the Stuttering One was checking upon the Tired One, who also was healthy, while instructing Kazuichi to wait for a moment for his turn. For a moment the Sharp Toothed One agreed, albeit with confusion as for why, until his eyes spotted Gundham standing within the mass of mortals and he suddenly turned and went up towards him with a steady sprint to his step. For a moment Gundham was in high alert what the mortal was trying to accomplish, readying himself for the mortal to yet again trying to assert some sort of foolish rivalry between them – Gundham could still not understand where the mortal got this foolish idea from that he had any kind of romantic interest in the She-Cat, when he had no attraction towards females and did not make a secret out of it. However upon reaching Gundham, Kazuichi then suddenly wound his arms around the taller man's neck and kissed him deeply for all the mortals around them to see. Gundham's whole mortal form froze instantly and he felt his face burn up from the kiss. It it weren't for his shock about the sudden kiss, he would have been euphoric as he could not deny that he did fancy Kazuichi from the moment his cursed eyes had beheld him, despite the mortal's more obnoxious believe of rivalry.

Before Gundham's mind could catch up enough to make his mortal form move to end the kiss – or deepen it, he was not sure what he wished to do – Kazuichi himself broke the kiss, yet he kept the close contact as he continued hugging Gundham with a smile on his face. “Good morning Gundham, I missed ya so much.” he cooed as he leaned his head against the other's chest in an almost adorable manner.

It took Gundham more than one try to steady his voice as it was breaking ever so often, “G-Good mo.. morning to you too...” Gundham could feel the eyes of the other mortals burning themselves into his back as they tried to figure out what was going on, which Gundham was also wondering. Only that he could not get himself to move.

To his relieve the Ordinary One came up and carefully tapped the Sharp Toothed One on his shoulder to gain his attention, “Kazuichi, can you come here for a second, I wanna check something.” Maybe Kazuichi's best friend could make the Tamer of Automations finally let go of Gundham.

At least he had hoped for it, however to his shock Kazuichi only gave a glare at Hajime that could have killed a mortal, “Don't ya see that we're having a moment here, so get lost!” his voice was close to a snarl, which made even Hajime flinch.

Even Gundham was shocked about the sudden hostility of the mortal. However he tried to calm the situation before it could get out of hand. “Tamer of Automations, you should not show such aggression towards our allies and listen to what the Ordinary One has to say.”

Quickly Kazuichi looked at Gundham and his face became filled with regret. “Oh yeah, you're right. I'm sorry.” He finally broke his embrace and turned towards the Ordinary One, who placed his hand upon the Sharp Toothed One's forehead.

“As I guessed, he's burning up as well from a fever.” he said and then gestured towards the others with the same fever, “Kazuichi, could you go over to Mikan for a second?” he asked in a friendly tone of voice.

However in return he got a face of discomfort from Kazuichi, who shook his head, “No, I don't wanna leave my Gundham.” and clung onto the breeder's arm with no intention of letting go.

“Kazuichi please be reasonable.” Hajime stressed.

Yet this only infuriated Kazuichi as he snarled and bared his sharp canines, “Are ya deaf of something? I said no!”

Before this conversation could find any form of conclusion the most dreaded voice piped up. “My goodness! That's obviously bad!” All the mortals turned towards the source of the voice and were faced with the cause of their suffering; Monokuma, who was looking at them with an almost sheepish grin filled with amusement. “Since all of you are burning for an explanation about what is going on, how about we just start with one?” he giggled as if it were nothing more than a childish play of his.

In that moment another obnoxious squeaking voice appeared, this time it was the pink rabbit who claimed to be their Mistress of Learning; Monomi. “H-Hold on! Monokuma! You're pulling a prank again, aren't you?!” she addressed her sibling with anger.

As always the two creatures began with an argument, which was not about the topic at hand; the weird illness that has taken hold of some of the mortals of this realm. Yet Monokuma then quickly ended their argument with a single punch to Monomi and knocking her weak form out.

“Now that I've shut up the nuisance, let's go back to the topic at hand.” Monokuma then said with an ominously glowing red eye, as if the mortals of this realm did not consider him to be a nuisance as well. “Though...” he gave a small chuckle that could have been considered cute if it were from anyone aside from him, “I'm pretty sure you guys have already noticed since you're all so quick-witted!”

Hajime was the one to reply to the cursed bear, “So... it's just as I thought... the true identity of this high fever is...”

“That's right, this is the new motive that I've given you!” Monokuma interrupted him with twisted cheer. “This is the Despair Disease!” he gave a cruel laugh, showing off the sharp teeth as his eye began to glow in a red like the deepest pits of hell.

Shock took hold of all the mortals at the dreadful reveal of this cursed being that was holding them captive in this twisted game of life and death.

“You know, there are extremely tiny insects that can't be seen with the naked eye living on this island...” he continued his act of childlike innocence as he crooked his head to the side, “It's not like I added them recently. I just never told you about them.” he added matter-of-factly. “Anyway, the endemic disease spread by the insects is called the Despair Disease!”

Confusion took hold of all the mortals.

“D-Despair Disease...” The Stuttering One was close to tears from distress, “I've never heard of... such a thing...!” Gundham could also not recall ever having heard of such a dreadful illness to exist.

“Then lemme tell you about it!” Monokuma bounced on the spot with twisted excitement, “As the name suggest, Despair Disease is a reaaaally annoying disease where you get a high fever with various symptoms that are full of despair! Those symptoms are different based on the person.” he explained before he turned his attention towards the Lucky One, “For instance, Nagito is afflicted by the Liar Disease...” he turned towards the Wild One, “Akane has the Coward Disease...”, then he looked at the Loud One, “Ibuki has the Gullible Disease, I guess?” before he then finally turned towards Kazuichi who was still holding onto Gundham's arm with the utmost affection, “And Kazuichi has the-” suddenly he stopped and began to giggle, “You know what, where is the fun in telling you all that?”

“What?” The Yakuza Heir furrowed his brows in anger, “Why the fuck aren't you bitch telling us what is wrong with him?!”

“Because as I said it's way more fun like this.” Monokuma simply chuckled, “I mean look at how cute these two lovebirds are, all filled with such sweet despair. I could just eat them!” his eye began to yet again glow at the last part and his voice turned almost violent as if he had every intention of feasting on their flesh. With this he then ended this part of the conversation and simply continued without giving any of the mortals a chance to complain. “Anyway, it's not like all you guys are down with the sickness yet...”

Wait. 'Yet'?

Monokuma simply chuckled, “But be careful! Sometimes the Despair Disease can get passed from person to person just like a cold!”

The She-Cat, just like all the other mortals, became horrified. “Y-You mean it is contagious?”

Their horror only raised Monokuma's amusement and cheerful mood, “Don't put your guard down just because you don't have the disease. It'd be awful if everyone got sick...”

All the mortals became frightened of this unknown illness plaguing this realm. Some even suggested to run before they could get infected. However then the Lazy One took over the word, “And why... is that a motive? Are you saying that a killing will occur soon, after everyone falls into a crazy state?”

“Isn't this quite a novel idea?” Monokuma was even proud about his twisted new game. He then even gave a cruel laugh filled with joy at their suffering, “A killing that occurs while everyone has a completely different personality! Think of all the murder tricks!”

Gundham instantly turned towards the Sharp Toothed One who was still clinging onto his arm without much care about the dreadful creature and his heinous plans as he looked up towards Gundham with some form of adoration. Was this why he had turned hostile towards the Ordinary One? So that he could be tempted to kill over whatever this dreadful illness was doing to his infected mind? Gundham could not let this happen!

“I-Is there an way to treat it?” Hajime glared at the cursed bear, yet his voice carried uncertainty.

“Why... is there a need to treat it?” Monokuma asked in confusion as if the question was foolish to even ask, “I mean, this Despair Disease isn't supposed to make you suffer. It's a disease that cures your soft hearts! Your soft hearts towards killing!” he laughed into their faces. “And with this, you can finally take the plunge and commit murderrrr!”

Instantly pandemonium broke out between the mortals as everyone talked in a frenzy filled with fear. The mortals all screamed and shouted as they tried to somehow process their newest situation without any luck. Gundham could not follow and he could not interfere to stop the arguments as Kazuichi was keeping him in place with his clinging. Everyone was screaming, however then suddenly the Lucky One was beginning to grow more and more unstable, until he suddenly lost consciousness and fainted right in front of them all from the fever that was affecting his already heavily weakened mortal form.

“Woah! He collapsed.” Kazuichi noticed, yet did not move or let go of Gundham to do anything. However the Stuttering One and the Ordinary One instantly went towards the fainted mortal as Monokuma had finally left with yet another ominous chuckle about their fates.

The mortals were again talking in a hurried and scared frenzy as Nagito's condition worsened and even Gundham could not contain his shock and worry. However Mikan then stopped them all, “Everyone, please stop! We have to hurry him over to the hospital!” Just like before, Hajime was again the first to help and together they hoisted the unconscious mortal up.

Yet before they could leave, the She-Cat spoke up with concern, “Um... what should we do about Akane, Ibuki and Kazuichi?”

“We're definitely going to bring them too...” Fuyuhiko replied, “We don't know what they'll do if we leave them alone.”

However their words were shut down by Kazuichi who snarled at them in fury, “Forget it! I'm not going anywhere without Gundham!” The hostility from Kazuichi made the other mortals flinch away from him and Gundham had to pull him back before he could do something that he would regret.

The Devil Dancer cried out in fear of the infected. “That disease sure looks dangerous. Nagito, Kazuichi, Akane and Ibuki aren't acting normal. It it spreads to anyone else, a killing is bound to happen.”

This Gundham could not deny as he looked at the Sharp Toothed One with concern, “Based on their observed behaviour, I can not deny that.” With the way that this curse was affecting them he could see them doing heinous things they would not commit otherwise.

“So it's important to make sure we don't end up catching the disease.” the Devil Dancer then stated as she kept her distance from all the currently infected “We have to isolate them to stop this thing from spreading!”

However the Ordinary One, who was still carrying the Lucky One, looked concerned about her suggestion, “I-Isolate? Isn't that a bit too harsh?”

“Hey, if everyone catches the Despair Disease, we won't be able to do anything about it any more, you know?” Hiyoko barked back with a glare.

The She-Cat nodded with a pained expression at what their ally said, “Well, while I do not want to admit it, she is right. We can not allow this disease to spread.”

“Isolation...” The Lazy One mumbled, “You mean we need to quarantine them inside something like the hospital, right?” This would be a good solution, Gundham could not lie. The infected did require medical attention after all.

For a moment longer the Ordinary One showed restrained at the idea, yet he then gave in as he looked at the mortal still leaning heavily against him for support due to his mostly unconscious state. “I guess you might be right... We need to get them all to the hospital, especially Nagito.”

However then the Yakuza Heir asked an important question that had to be taken care off first, “But even if we quarantine them, who's gonna take care of them?”

“Mikan's gonna stay there anyway.” the Devil Dancer gave the nurse a smug look, “She's been touching the infected all over so it's possible she's already caught the disease.”

While she was correct about the possibility it was a cruel thought to leave the burden on her alone, which Hajime expressed out loud. “But there's no way we can leave her by herself...”

“Then why don't you stay too?” the Devil Dancer stared the Ordinary One down. “Now that I think about it, you touched them when you took their temperature, right? Same like the edge lord of there who was making out with the greasy idiot.” she pointed at Gundham, who instantly blushed and also stammered quietly in shock to himself at the nickname. Hiyoko however only smiled “Soooo I'll leave the rest to you. Contact me if something happens.” before she went off.

“Ehm...” Mikan suddenly spoke up with worry, “Can we please now move the infected? I really need to have a look at them.” she pleaded, making all the mortal return to reality, before she and Hajime began moving the infected towards the hospital.

Gundham took a look at Kazuichi, who was still refusing to leave without him. As it had been decided anyway that he would join the infected mortals into the quarantine, he then also began walking, making Kazuichi follow willingly.

***

They moved all of the infected mortals into the hospital, where they assigned each of them a room to reside in until their health would improve and where they could be watched. However the task of changing their clothing so that they could rest proved itself more difficult. The Lucky One was still unconscious and as such required to be changed by the mortals now caring for their well-being, while the Wild One showed genuine fear about having to change her clothes and needed the Stuttering One to reassure her during the whole process. To their relieve at least the Loud One was quick to do as she had been instructed, although it was concerning that she fulfilled every command given, no matter what.

However the Sharp Toothed One proved himself the most difficult to handle.

“This is your room, Kazuichi.” Mikan said when they went inside of the patient room in which he was assigned to reside in for the duration of his infection. “P-Please get changed and then lie down in the bed to sleep. We will come back to check up on you later.”

While at first moving to take the offered gown from the nurse, Kazuichi then halted his movement, “What? No, I don't want Gundham to leave.” he whined and moved to hug Gundham, pushing his face into his chest, instead of doing as he was instructed. While Gundham did harbour feelings for the Sharp Toothed One and always wished to hold him close, this was a bit more physical contact than he was used to, if he was honest with himself.

“P-Please Kazuichi, lie down.” Mikan stressed again which tears forming in her eyes, “We will c-come back for you.”

However this only agitated him further and he barked, “No!” making the nurse flinch.

Gundham could not watch by how this curse was making Kazuichi cause distress to their allies, so he tried to address the mortal, “Tamer of Automations, do cease your hostile behaviour towards our allies at once and apologise to the Stuttering One, as she is only trying to heal your ailment.”

Being warned by Gundham made Kazuichi's eyes widen with shock, before his expression turned into one of regret. Turning towards the Stuttering One, he kept his eyes downcast, “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scream at ya...”

Having the sick mortal show repentance made the nurse show a genuine smile, “It's okay. I know that you are only behaving like this because you are sick.” she then handed over the hospital gown, “Now please do get changed and lie down to sleep. In the meantime I need to check up on Nagito again.”

While Kazuichi accepted the offered garment, he still showed reluctance and discomfort, as his eyes turned towards Gundham.

Giving a sigh, as he could guess what was on the mortal's mind, Gundham then gave him an offer. “Will you do as you are instructed if I remain within this realm while you descent into the realm of dreams?”

With a shine in his eyes, the mortal then finally gave in and agreed to do as instructed. Gundham then told the Stuttering One that she shall summon him if she is in the need of his assistance, while he remains with the Tamer of Automations, before she left with them all having come to an agreement.

When the nurse left the private realm to check upon the Lucky One, who was in the dire need of her healing, Gundham then turned towards the Sharp Toothed One. To only feel the heat rush to his face, as Kazuichi was undressing himself to his undergarments without any shame. While Gundham knew that it was an ordinary occurrence for a male to change in the vicinity of another, Gundham could not help his reactions as the other's mortal form was almost sinfully alluring.

The matter turns even worse when Kazuichi noticed his reaction. “You like what ya see?” he suddenly purred and leaned his mostly unclad mortal form snugly against Gundham's own, letting his fingers run along the other's own garments, “If you want I can show ya even more.”

The blood that was within Gundham's face only moments ago was now rushing towards lower regions of his body from the lewd suggestion, making his mortal form freeze up. He could not formulate words and only managed a stammer, “T-This wo..would be highly in-inappropriate.”

“Why?” Kazuichi wound his arms around Gundham's neck, “It's not like you never saw before.”

“Wh.. What are you saying?” The most that Gundham has seen of the other's mortal form before had been shortly after their arrival when they had been within the ocean while wearing garments meant for swimming. However then Gundham was unable to question the mortal's statement, as the look within his eyes was... off. He could not say what it was, yet the way that Kazuichi was looking at him with adoration and desire seemed almost... twisted. Yet still familiar as if within the deepest parts of his cursed soul Gundham knew exactly what the mortal was referring to and he could not deny the claim that has been given.

However when Kazuichi, within his confused state, tried to let his hands wander along Gundham's mortal form, he snapped back out of his thoughts and grabbed the mortal's hands with a heavily blushing face as he stammered out, “Your f-fever must be affecting you m.. more than I a-assumed.” he cleared he throat, “So please rest now, before you harm yourself.”

“Fine.” Kazuichi gave a pout but then finally followed the instruction that has been given to him and dressed in the gown before lying down in the bed. As the fever was affecting the mortal's mind and body, it did not took long for him to fall asleep, leaving Gundham the chance to finally breathe.

Yet he could not shake his feeling of familiarity and curiosity about the expression the mortal had made.

***

Later Gundham learned from Hajime that Fuyhiko has joined them with the care of the infected mortals and that their allies have stationed themselves within the motel within this island so that they can be within direct reach should assistance be needed. However they were in the need of a device that would allow communication without having to go within direct contact of each other. For which they needed the Tamer of Automations as he was the only mortal within this realm with the required abilities to construct such a device.

Things became even more tedious when Monokuma returned to inform the mortals who were tasked to care for their sick allies that only mortals who were suffering from an ailment and one healer were allowed to rest within the Realm of Healing. Meaning Hajime, Fuyuhiko and Gundham himself were prohibited from sleeping within this realm during the nights and had to leave. As joining the other mortals within the motel contradicted the whole purpose of their quarantine, they were then forced to the decision of sleeping within their originally assigned cottages, while Mikan would rest within the on-call room.

As all the infected mortals were sleeping, while the Lucky One was still within a critical state, the four allies decided that the Stuttering One, with the help of the Ordinary One, should remain and continue taking care of the infected, while the Furious One and Gundham went on the quest to find something to use as a communication device or which can be modified into one when the Tamer of Automations was awake again and was hopefully within a condition to build something.

With the decision being made, Gundham and Fuyuhiko left for their search, leaving the other mortals' well-being in Mikan's and Hajime's hands.

Their main destination was Electric Avenue as this realm was a whole miniature town fully dedicated to electronic goods. Although most of them were heavily outdated and bordered on being useless junk as far as Gundham could identify. However when he and his allies had first explored this realm the Tamer of Automations had been ecstatic about this particular town as it was the only one to feature a multitude of electronics up until now. He had even informed Gundham that he had been raised in such conditions, which had given him the opportunity to school his crafts, and as such Gundham could understand his excitement.

“Fuck that's a lot of junk.” The Easily Angered One stated as he looked at the multitude of electronics, “All this stuff is older than my folks and just as screwed up. Almost nothing of this stuff even turns on.”

“I have to admit that I can not understand he usage we are supposed to have of this realm, however the Tamer of Automations did state that he could work with what can be found here.” Gundham looked around and picked up whatever he assumed that could be useful for their purpose. While ever so often also taking what he believed Kazuichi would enjoy to have within his possession, to maybe lift his spirits during his ailment and maybe when it passes.

As both mortals were not knowledgeable with electronics, they were not entirely sure what to look for during their quest and as such decided to take as much as they could find that might serve a purpose and later on return what would stay unused. Both agreed that it would be wise to take more than to have to return again, as Kazuichi himself was not able to search for himself in his condition.

“I think this is enough.” Fuyuhiko then stated as he placed the last part into the bag he had brought, which he then slung over his shoulder.

“I do agree.” Gundham did the same with the bag he carried, “We can not take too much into the Realm of Healing, as it would become less sanitary the more we would retrieve.”

Returning towards the Realm of Healing Gundham wondered how the Sharp Toothed One was fairing and if he was still resting. When he then entered the building his question was instantly answered by the sound of screaming.

“Kazuichi, calm down and go back to bed!”

Instantly Gundham and Fuyuhiko sprinted towards the room from which the screaming came from and they found both Hajime and Mikan who were struggling to keep Kazuichi from leaving the room assigned to him, which was a monumental feat considering the infected mortal's high fever.

“What is going on here?” Gundham asked in shock at the scene, while Kazuichi instantly ceased his attempts to fight the mortals who were keeping him from leaving.

“Gundham!” he cried out with a whiny voice, “Where were you? You said that you would stay with me.”

The genuine hurt within the other's eyes made Gundham feel regret, as he did promise to remain. “I am sorry for leaving, however the Yakuza Heir and I have retrieved electronic parts for you, as we have wanted to ask you to construct us a device to communicate with the other mortals. I did not mean to cause you distress.”

“What?” Kazuichi said with surprise while the other mortals finally could let go of him, now that he did not try to run away. Gundham opened the bag he was carrying, showing it's contents to the mechanic. “You got that for me?” His eyes began to shine, however then his mortal form stumbled to the side as the fever was now affecting him after him exhausting his mortal form. Quickly Gundham caught him with his free hand to steady him, before Mikan took over and moved Kazuichi back to his bed to lie down.

“I told you stay in bed.” she made an attempt of a scowl, yet it did not seem truly affective due to her general timid nature and disposition.

Although Kazuichi did show remorse for his action, even if they may only stem from his condition now having worsened from his behaviour. “Sorry...”

“It's okay.” she accepted his apology, “Now do p-please sleep a bit more until we bring you something to eat.”

Instead of agreeing to the nurse's instructions, Kazuichi turned towards Gundham with uncertainty in his eyes.

“Just stay with him, otherwise he's probably not going to listen.” Hajime suddenly said as he rubbed his temples to ease what Gundham assumed to be a headache.

“Then I will remain.” he agreed and looked at Kazuichi, “However only under one condition. I am unable to stay within this realm over the darkest of hours, as we are prohibited from it, so if you wish for me to not leave you now, you have to promise me that you will be satisfied with me remaining during the days and during the nights will sleep within this realm and will not cause the Stuttering One or any of the other infected mortals any grief until I return.”

For a moment Kazuichi considered the offer and after a moment gave a nod in agreement, sealing their pact.

Taking a seat next to the bed in which the infected mortal was to rest, they then send their allies off to continue their quest of caring for the other infected mortals, while Kazuichi returned to resting, as Gundham occupied himself in the meantime by reading the book he had collected from his cottage earlier when he and the Yakuza Heir had gathered the mechanic's tools from his cottage.

A few hours went past until the Stuttering One returned with a meal for Kazuichi and Gundham, along with medications to lower the sick mortal's fever. As it turned out Kazuichi could turn fussy when it was about the consumption of medications and healthy meals, however he did follow all the instructions given to him with only some small whining. However it came also to light that it seems as if Kazuichi craved even more physical contact with other mortals when he was feeling unwell, as the moment he sat down on the table within the patient room together with Gundham to consume their meals he instantly leaned against the other, making Gundham blush. For the beginning Gundham did wonder if it were just due to the specific curse Kazuichi was suffering from, however Kazuichi had always been of the more physically affectionate mortals who would lean against mortals he trusted and would hug his close allies in platonic affection, so he could imagine that it was a usual behaviour of him.

After finishing their meal and Gundham cleaning up, the Tamer of Automations then decided to attempt constructing a communication device, as his fever was not affecting him as much at the current time and they were in the desperate need of it. As the table was not big enough to house all the collected parts and devices, they strew everything out on the floor and took a seat on it, with a blanket around Kazuichi's moral form to avoid him getting cold. Despite his still lingering fever, Kazuichi proved his talent as he needed only a short amount of time to gather what he needed for his mission and began to work. Where he yet again leaned against Gundham's mortal form. While Gundham could yet again feel his face grow hot and his otherwise cold and icy heart beat within a quicker pace, he did not stop the mortal from leaning against him. Even when he moved closer and in the end was sitting between Gundham's legs while leaning with his back against the other's chest as both now used the blanket, as he continued his work and explained every step to the breeder with pride and excitement. Gundham had to admit that he did enjoy the closeness, even if he knew that he should not.

It took until the afternoon, with many breaks within as the mechanic was not feeling his best, until he finished the needed device and handed it over to the Ordinary One with an explanation on how it is to be used. Which he then repeated towards the other mortal within the motel, who were displayed on the screen.

Which the needed task being done, they then shared their final meal as the Goddess of the Sun was slowly lowering herself to rest and leave the reign of the sky to her sister, the Luna Goddess. As soon as they finished their meal, Gundham assisted Kazuichi back to bed to rest for the night.

“Now rest until I return.” Gundham told him, making the other nod in return, “I then wish you a good rest for the night and I will see you when the Goddess of the Sun returns with her warming light. Goodnight, Kazuichi.”

“Goodnight, Gundham.”

With this he then left the Realm of Healing, together with the Ordinary One and the Easily Angered One as they returned towards their private realms for the night to rest.

It took Gundham some time to find rest. Lying in his bed he was looking up towards the dark ceiling above him as he let the many incidents of this day pass his mind. This curse which the hellish bear has put upon them was a dangerous one, as it was the most unpredictable one. The infected mortals were not within a sound mind any more and it would be dangerous if any more might infect themselves with this curse, as they could not imagine how their behaviour might change. Gundham could only dread how his mind might twist if he were to infect himself.

However what was keeping his mind the most alert was his worry about Kazuichi, who was one of the mortals inflicted with this curse and was now within the Realm of Healing where Gundham could not return within a short moment should any dangers arise. He was worried that something might happen to him or that his condition might worsen, and that Gundham would not know until the next morning. However there was no returning for him, as even with his dark powers he could not remain awake for such long time and falling asleep within anything else than a Realm designed for resting would result in punishment. A punishment akin to the one the Trainer of Warriors has suffered from to protect the Wild One, which was a fate he could not suffer from as he had to still protect his allies. He still had to protect Kazuichi.

Despite the worried clouding his mind, Gundham could feel his consciousness slowly drifting into the Realm of Dreams for the darkest night. At least until a sound alerted him. Some mortal was knocking on his door.

Being in high alert, as an unannounced visit at night could have a more sinister meaning, he made his way towards the door and after readying himself for an possible attack, he opened it. To find Kazuichi standing before him, still dressed in his hospital gown and with his blanket draped around his mortal form.

“Kazuichi?” Gundham looked at the mortal in shock, “What are you doing here? Has something happened?” He did not look injured or in distress, so it did not seem as something might be amiss.

The mortal was fidgeting on the spot on which he was standing upon. “I couldn't sleep and wanted to see ya...” he admitted with a small voice, “I know that I promised to stay in the hospital, but I just couldn't.” His posture became more distressed the more the explained and his hands, which were holding the blanket in place, were tensing up. “Can I please stay here? I don't think that I'll be able to sleep otherwise...”

Gundham was troubled. The mortal's distress was evident and Gundham wished to ease his mind. However there was a problem. “While I do not mind letting you remain within my private realm if you feeling such distress, but what if the Stuttering One is searching for you?”

“I left her a note.” Kazuichi explained, “I wanted to tell her that I'm going to ya, but she's sleeping and I didn't wanna wake her when she's working so hard.”

While the mortal should have remained within the Realm of Healing as he had promised, at least he had been considerate enough to leave a message behind. Yet it might still cause distress to the nurse. Wondering what to do Gundham considered bringing Kazuichi back to the Realm of Healing, however he was convinced that in the mortal's highly distressed state he might not remain or at the very least not find rest. So Gundham moved aside, “Do come in, but please do lie down so that we both can rest for the night.”

“Thank you!” with newfound enthusiasm, Kazuichi gave Gundham a hug and a kiss to his cheek, making Gundham's face burn up, before he took a seat on the bed.

Closing the door behind himself and wondering if this was the wisest decision to make, Gundham then joined him and they then both lied down on the bed. Thankfully the bed was of a big enough size to easily house two mortals at once without them struggling for space.

Making sure that the infected mortal was properly covered so that he would be able to overcome his fever fully, Gundham then turned off the light. “I wish you a goodnight, Kazuichi. Now please do rest and do not again wonder through the cold night.”

“I won't I promise.” Kazuichi replied, “Goodnight, Gundham.” Suddenly he moved closer to Gundham and cuddled against him, as he mumbled happily, “You're warm.”

Again Gundham was caught off guard, however after a day full of physically contact from the mortal Gundham was getting more used to the sudden closeness and as such he did let him do as he wished, as long as he could rest and hopefully find health again.

For a few moments it was silent within the cottage, until suddenly Kazuichi began to mumble. “I'm sorry for being such a bother all the time...” he pressed his face into Gundham's chest, “It's just that I really, really like ya and I don't know how to handle it any more.”

“Kazuichi, I do understand that you ailment is making you think in such ways, so do not worry.” He had no hard feelings towards the mortal as his current behaviour was not within his control.

“No, you don't understand.” Kazuichi shook his head without looking up. “You think I only like ya because of this disease, I know it. I'm not that brain-dead from fever...” his hands fisted into Gundham's shirt to keep them from shaking from distress about his curse. “I really like you, I liked you from the start. Just now I can't control it any more and being away from you feels like it's making me absolutely crazy and it scares me.”

The fear in the mortal's voice made Gundham's cursed heart feel heavy and he wished for nothing more than to ease his mind. As such he gently let his hand run along Kazuichi's back, “You do not need to feel fear. I will remain with you and whenever you feel that you might loose control over your mind due to the curse that has been put upon you I will help you and listen to your every worry without judgement until you are healed.”

For a moment Kazuichi remained silent, however Gundham was sure that within the darkness he saw a faint smile. “Thank you.”

After this their conversation fell silent and slowly both of them finally fell into the Realm of Dreams for the night without any further disturbances.

***

The next morning Gundham escorted Kazuichi back to the Realm of Healing, where he deeply apologised to the Stuttering One for breaking his promise and leaving without her permission. To avoid any more problems of the kind, they then arranged that the Tamer of Automations would rest within Gundham's Private Realm with him, as otherwise they could not guarantee him to remain and not show any unwanted hostility that he could not control. Which this arrangement no more incidents happened where Kazuichi could not keep the control over his mind. However whenever he was separated from Gundham he would always turn highly anxious and distressed from the mildly obsessive behaviour which was caused by the Despair Disease. Kazuichi also remained being highly affectionate towards Gundham, hugging him, cuddling with him and even sometimes kissing him. There were also sometimes moments where Kazuichi turned more seductive towards Gundham, however these were luckily rare as they were a bit too much for Gundham to handle.

Otherwise the days passed without any incidents occurring. The Lucky One's health was improving until he was up on his feet again and the hellish bear has not shown his face any more. Every passing day the mortals within the Realm of Healing had a conversation with the mortal residing within the motel to share informations about any possible changes, which there never were any.

At least until one morning when Gundham and Kazuichi were on their way to return to the Realm of Healing in the morning, accompanied by Fuyuhiko, and Hajime ran up towards them in pure panic as one of their allies had been killed.

Just like twice before the mortals were forced to investigate the murder of what turned out to be Ibuki, who had been hanged and later on, Hiyoko who had her throat slit in the must gruesome way. However the moment the investigation began and Monokuma had given everyone the files about the murders, all of the infected mortals suddenly had all of their symptoms vanish with only clouded memories remaining. It was as if the murders had removed all the traces of the illness, however none of the mortals had the chance to question any connections as their time was short.

The trial was like all the ones before convoluted and full of lies that they had to uncover until the truth was revealed. It had been Mikan, the one who they had trusted with everyone's care, who had caused this suffering as she herself has been infected with the curse and remembered the things they have all forgotten, which she ultimately took with her into her untimely demise as her punishment was held.

After being forced to watch her demise and having to mourn yet more of their allies, everyone's hearts have felt heavy, even with the return of the Trainer of Warriors in his newest form.

Moving along the dusk alone, Gundham tried to sort the thoughts that were clouding his mind, when he found Kazuichi sitting on the beach in silence as he watches the waves. Joining him, Gundham took a seat next to him as they watched the ocean in silence as the Goddess of the Sun gave her last light for the now dying day.

When she had vanished within the vast horizon and gave room to the stars and moon, Kazuichi was the one to finally break the silence. “Gundham... I'm sorry about my behaviour...” he rubbed the back of his neck as his eyes were drawn towards his feet. “I don't really remember clearly what I did while being sick, but I remember some things I did and said, which were probably hella embarrassing for ya...”

“Do not worry, as I do not feel any resentment towards you about anything that has happened.” Gundham replied as he also kept his eyes towards the nothingness before him.

“Then do ya think that maybe we can pretend like nothing of that ever happened and just continue like before?” Kazuichi asked carefully with hope within his voice.

Gundham was silent for a moment as he thought about the words of the other and could feel his chest feel tight. Finally he turned his eyes towards the mortal next to him, who was looking back at him. “Do you really wish to return to how we have been before the curse has held you in it's unforgiving grasp?”

Again silence as Kazuichi felt into thought. “Not really...” he said carefully, before his eyes averted themselves from Gundham's and he mumbled in a hardly audible voice, “I haven't been lying about what I said the first night, ya know..?”

“What?” Did Gundham mishear him?

However before getting an answer, Kazuichi raised himself from the ground, “Anyway how about we go back to the hotel? I don't really wanna be out too long after... ya know.”

Nodding to the suggestion, Gundham then also raised himself up and joined the mortal as they returned towards the hotel together and went towards their private realms.

However before departing ways to vanish into their own private realms Kazuichi suddenly stopped and before Gundham could question him, leaned up and placed a shy kiss on his cheek, “Thank ya for taking care of me.” before running of towards his cottage with a red face, “Goodnight Hamster-chan!” and vanishing inside.

Gundham stood still for a moment as his mortal form was frozen, yet his cursed heart was feeling as if it were melting. Hiding his face behind his scarf from bashfulness, he then returned to his own cottage for the night, as a smile had formed on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> I have to admit, it was so super weird writing about the Despair Disease during the whole Corona Pandemic


End file.
